Fundraising

Do you want to see some in-depth investigative and explanatory journalism focused on state and local issues? If so, please consider making a tax-deductible contribution to The Iowa Center for Public Affairs Journalism.

If you would rather write a check, please make it payable to The Iowa Center for Public Affairs Journalism.

Supporters who use either method to donate will receive a written acknowledgment of their contributions and confirmation that the funds are restricted to use by ICPAJ.

IowaWatch: A Community Effort

The Iowa Center for Public Affairs Journalism-IowaWatch.org is grateful to the following donors for their contributions to our efforts to provide Iowans with investigative and explanatory reporting and writing and to sustain the vital role of a public-spirited free press in a democratic society:

Reva and David Logan Foundation

Ethics and Excellence in Journalism Foundation

John S. and James L. Knight Foundation

The Gazette (Cedar Rapids, IA)

Woodward Communications Inc.

KCRG-TV9

Iowa State Bar Association

AARP Iowa

Amalie Nash

Community Foundation of Johnson County

Fund for Investigative Journalism

Michael Anderson

Associated Press

Tony Baranowski and Sara Konrad Baranowski

Dora and Bill Brubaker

Stephen J. and Cheryl C. Berry

Burlington Hawk Eye

Greater Cedar Valley Alliance & Chamber

Demitri Cherniak

Clarion Hotel Highlander Conference Center

John and Diana Colgan

The Courier (Waterloo-Cedar Falls, IA)

Des Moines Marriott Downtown

Anne Duggan

Frank and Gigi Durham

Carolyn Dyer

Dyersville Commercial

Randy Evans

Faegre Baker Daniels LLC

John Gruber-Miller

Robert Gutsche Jr.

Bridget Casey Gutsche

Andy and Dee Hall

Kate Hayden

Nora Heaton

Hills Bank & Trust Co.

Iowa Association for Justice

Iowa Broadcasters Association

Iowa Freedom of Information Council

Iowa Newspaper Association

Iowa City-Coralville Convention & Visitors Bureau

Iowa City Press-Citizen

Jim Jacobson

David and Lynn Jansen

Paul Jensen

Erin and Thomas Jordan

Clark Kauffman

Erik Kelderman

Kuhl, Phillips, Jans, Inc.

John Kenyon

Paul Kramer

Julia LaBua

Sara Langenberg

Daniel Lathrop

Anne Marie Taylor Lathrop

Steffi Lee

Tessa Lengeling

Tony Lengeling

Jim Malewitz

John McLure

MECCA Services

MidwestOne Bank

Brian Mills

Brian Morelli

Lyle and Vicki Muller

Nicholas B. Ottaway Foundation

David Perlmutter

Judy Polumbaum

Register Media

Lisa Rossi

Margaret Schmitz

Grant Schulte

David Schwartz

Sid Scott

Jim Sernoe, in memory of Don Smith, Kay Amert and John Bennett

Mary Sharp

Vanessa Shelton

Irma Simpson

Jane Singer

Mark Smith

James Snyder

Starbucks Coffee

Jeff Stein

Scott Stewart

Dave Storey

Alan Swanson

Melissa Tully

Mary Ungs-Sogaard

McCormick Foundation

Investigative News Network

Richard Tapscott

University of Iowa Honors Fellows Program

UnityPoint Health of Des Moines

Danny Valentine

Bob Walker

Floyd Walter

Alecia Hilmer

Tyson Wirth

Corinna Zarek

Zephyr Printing

Zhi Xiong

In addition to these donations, the Iowa Center’s work has been totally dependent upon the thousands of volunteer hours from our unpaid staff, contributing writers and other individuals. The Board of Directors and officers are deeply indebted to the following individuals:

Michael Anderson

Laura Arny

Cheryl Berry

Harrison Berry

Tricia Brown

Hayley Bruce

Katie Buchholz

Jay Capron

Joy (Chia-Yu) Chang

Cait Conner

Diana Colgan

Libby Collins

Dana Davidsen

Josie D’Agostino

Steve Delaney

Melea Dau

Julia Davis

Lindsey Drilling

Gabriella Dunn

MacKenzie Elmer

Danielle Ferguson

Allison French

Jane Fritsch

Caitlin Fry

Gabe Gao

Michael Garvin

Erin Gerken

John Goodlove

Stephen Gruber-Miller

Xinran Gu

Robert Gutsche Jr.

Sarah Hadley

Tyler Harris

Nora Heaton

Emily Hoerner

Rebekah Hoeger

Meghan Horihan

Guannan Huang

Brett Johnson

Krista Johnson

Sujin Kim

Zack Kucharski

Katie Kuntz

Tessa Lengeling

John Lohman

Jacob Luplow

Robert Maharry

Jim Malewitz

Inma Mateos

Clare McCarthy

Katelynn McCollough

Katherine McMullen

Lauren Mills

Bill Monroe

Benjamin Moore

Chris Mudge

Charles Munro

Greta Meyle

Nancy Newhoff

Tiffany O’Donnell

Ashley Oerman

Rachel Peterson

Rebecca Pierson

Patrick Riepe

Ryan Roccaforte

Shaena Roth

Amber Rouse

Donna Schill

Alex Schuman

Erin Selin

Lu Shen

Mark Siebert

Brian Steffen

Joe Sheller

Jana Shepherd

Hannah Soyer

Jonathan Stefonek

Kathryn Susik

Linh Ta

Makayla Tendall

Jaime Vargas

Danielle Wilde

Peter Wilson

Patrick Wright

Tom Yunt

Lamia Zia

* * *

Iowa Center for Public Affairs Journalism Policy on Financial Support

Overview

This policy seeks to reconcile the need for financial support with the values of the Iowa Center for Public Affairs Journalism, the foremost of which is editorial independence. While the Center fails if it becomes unsustainable financially, it also fails if it loses public confidence in its integrity. The policy acknowledges, too, that individuals and organization invest in projects that further their own goals and values, directly or indirectly. Hence, the policy is organized around three categories of financial supporters’ intentions – those who seek to support investigative journalism in general; those who seek to support investigations, operations and activities in particular areas of interest; and those who seek to support specific investigations. Furthermore, this policy includes a section outlining the rights of the Iowa Center for Public Affairs Journalism’s financial supporters.

The Iowa Center for Public Affairs Journalism’s Board of Directors retains full authority over the Policy on Financial Support and revenue generation efforts and may reject financial support for any reason, to protect the best journalistic and business interests of the organization. The policy pertains to cash support as well as to in-kind support of the Center. The Center exercises close scrutiny when deciding who can fund, sponsor or otherwise underwrite ongoing news coverage. The Center is especially cautious with respect to potential funders whose principal purpose or agenda is to bring about a specific political outcome or to influence public policy or public opinion on controversial matters that are the current subjects of its ongoing coverage.

Like many news organizations, the Center maintains a firewall between news coverage decisions and its sources of revenue. The Iowa Center for Public Affairs Journalism’s financial supporters shall have no voice in the Center’s editorial decisions. All donations, sponsorships and other forms of financial support are subject to compliance with the Policy on Financial Support, including provisions for transparency, the disclosure of donors’ identities, and the prohibition on donations from political parties, elected officials, or others whose contribution may affect public perception of the Center’s independence. Acceptance of financial support does not constitute implied or actual endorsement of the Center’s funders or their products, services or opinions.

Support of investigative journalism in general

The Center will seek and accept gifts, grants and sponsorships from individuals and organizations in any amount for the general support of the center’s activities. Acceptance of this support neither expresses nor implies any voice in editorial decisions beyond the broadly stated mission of investigative journalism. We expect that most gifts and grants of this type will come from foundations, organizations and individuals concerned about the future of journalism in general and the future of investigative journalism in particular.

Support of particular areas of interest

The Center will establish a limited number of funds to support investigations in specific areas of public importance, such as the environment, education or governmental integrity. To assure that donors respond to the Center’s priorities rather than the Center responding to the agenda of others, each fund will be approved by the Board of Directors before any gifts are solicited and accepted.

The Center also will accept support designated for specific areas of operations, such as professional training programs; educational activities for students and the public; data analysis and specific features at www.IowaWatch.org that are not compromised by the financial support; and activities, such as an annual reception and dinner that focuses on open government. As described elsewhere in this policy, financial supporters shall have no voice in decisions regarding the Center’s operations and activities.

The activation of such funds shall be contingent upon development of an efficient and reliable system for tracking the receipt and expenditure of these donations.

The Center may accept contributions from individuals and organizations that agree to the following conditions:

Gifts and grants are tied to a subject area defined by the Center but not to a particular project or investigation.

All donations of $5,000 or more will be announced at the time the gift or grant, and publicly acknowledged for at least 12 months.

Support of specific investigations

The Center will consider gifts or grants to support particular investigative projects. As noted above, the Center exercises close scrutiny when deciding who can fund, sponsor, or otherwise underwrite ongoing news coverage. The Center is especially cautious with respect to potential funders whose principal purpose or agenda is to bring about a specific political outcome or to influence public policy or public opinion on controversial matters that are the current subjects of its ongoing coverage.

All project-specific grants require approval from the Iowa Center for Public Affairs Journalism Board of Directors and will conform to the following conditions:

The Center exercises editorial control of any project. The donor specifically cedes any right to review editorial content or to restrict its distribution.

All funds are transferred to the Iowa Center for Public Affairs Journalism before the start of the investigation and are not refundable.

Financial contributions to specific projects are totally transparent and public, with the contribution being publicly acknowledged and a disclaimer specifying the nature of the relationship.

Rights of the Iowa Center for Public Affairs Journalism’s financial supporters

Every financial supporter of the Iowa Center for Public Affairs Journalism is entitled to a full and clear written description of the arrangement, including:

Acknowledgement of the Center’s receipt of the support.

Public recognition of the support.

Description of how the support will be used.

A statement whether the supporter has received anything of value from the Center in exchange for the support (as required by IRS).

A list of key dates and deliverables, including such items as when publicity will commence and when any required progress reports will be submitted.

Description of mutually agreed upon set of benefits, if any, for the funder. These may include such items as naming rights, expected services for media partners, sponsorship acknowledgements and free tickets to Center events.

Assurance that the Center will be held accountable for delivering on commitments made to financial supporters.

Right of first refusal for subsequent funding cycles of operations and activities that supporters currently fund, unless the Center determines that the supporter is no longer appropriate to the operation or activity; or a relationship with the supporter is no longer in the best interests of the Center.

Procedures

1. Revenue generation is the work of the board, management and designated staff, consultants or volunteers. Only those who are identified by the Iowa Center for Public Affairs Journalism’s management and approved by the board will be authorized to raise revenue on behalf of the Center. All such efforts by the board, management, staff or volunteers will strictly adhere to this policy.

2. In the spirit of transparency, the Center will compile a complete list of donors each fiscal year or more frequently, and make the list available for public inspection through the Center’s website and other reports.

The Center will not accept gifts from anonymous contributors.

The Center will not accept gifts from political parties, elected officials or others whose contribution may affect public perception of the Center’s independence or reputation.

Gifts may be in cash, in-kind services or tangible goods. If not in cash, a value will be attached to the gift.

The list of donors will be published at least semi-annually, but may be published more frequently as directed by the board.

The Iowa Center for Public Affairs Journalism never will share donors’ personal information for the sake of advertising or other direct-mail efforts, unless the donor consents in advance.

3. All checks or credit card transactions deposited to the Center must be intended by the donor to be given as a gift, meeting the criteria above.

Checks, debit or credit transactions will be made payable to the Iowa Center for Public Affairs Journalism. Instructions provided to donors for gifts to the Center will instruct the donor to make the check payable to the Iowa Center for Public Affairs Journalism.

An Iowa Center for Public Affairs Journalism Gift Deposit Form will be completed for each check, debit or credit card transaction sent to the Center. Correspondence with the donor will accompany the Gift Deposit Form when doing so will be useful in documenting the intent to give the gift. In accordance with good donor stewardship practices and with all IRS regulations, all gifts will receive an acknowledgment in writing or by e-mail, which will be archived.

4. As technology develops, methods may be implemented to accept very small donations, or micropayments, through online transactions. These contributions ranging from pennies to $20 might be associated with general support, subject specific funds or specific projects.

Where credit card payments are accepted, the Center will obliterate the credit card number from any copies of source documents after deposit.

6. Gifts of stock, real estate or other non-cash gifts not covered elsewhere may only be accepted following specific approval by the Iowa Center for Public Affairs Journalism Board of Directors.

7. Iowa Center for Public Affairs Journalism fund development practices and accounting for gifts will fulfill all Internal Revenue Service, state of Iowa and other relevant regulations at the state and federal level.